Transcript Itinerary for today, Monday, Jan. 30th

Background
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The Odyssey is a sequel (the second book in a
series).
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It is the second of Homer’s two great epic
poems.
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Part one is called The Iliad
The Iliad
The Iliad is the story of the Trojan War which
might actually have taken place around 1250
B.C.
 This poem is a tale of myth and magic, not
history.

The gods and goddesses of Ancient
Greece are important characters.
 They take sides in the war and help the
human characters.
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According to myth, the war started this way: Paris was a
prince in the city of Troy.

Three goddesses asked him to judge who among them
was the most beautiful.

Aphrodite, the goddess of love, offered Paris a reward if
he chose her.

She said he could have Helen, the most beautiful woman
in the world.

However, Helen was married to Menelaus, the King of
Sparta, a city in Greece.

When Paris visited Sparta, Aphrodite made Helen fall in
love with him.

Helen ran away with Paris.

Menelaus and his brother,
Agamemnon, led a Greek
army against Troy to bring
her back.

The war that followed is
called the Trojan War after
the name Troy.
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The Iliad takes place during the last months of
the Trojan War.
Its hero is Achilles, a mighty Greek warrior.
The Iliad ends with the funeral of Hector, a
Trojan hero who is killed by Achilles.
The story tells of many heroes on both sides.
One of the Greek heroes is named Odysseus.
The Odyssey
The Odyssey is named for Odysseus.
 Odysseus is the King of Itacha, an island
off the coast of Greece.
 According to the myth, Odysseus did not
want to fight at Troy.
 He did not want to leave his wife,
Penelope, and his baby son, Telemachus.

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Odysseus had to be tricked into joining the
Greek army.
Once he was involved in the fighting,
however, he proved to be brave and clever.
In fact, Odysseus thought of the trick that
finally won the war for the Greeks.
The Odyssey is mostly about Odysseus’
adventures after the Trojan War.
In one adventure, he makes an enemy of
Poseidon, the Sea God.
Poseidon punishes him by making him
wander the seas, never allowing him to reach
home.
Epic Poem or Story

An Epic Poem or story is a larger than life
story that contains many adventures or a
long journey.